Notes Payable (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended				1 Months Ended							1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended			1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended					1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended							1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009	Apr. 30, 2010	Oct. 31, 2011 Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square	Jan. 31, 2011 Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square	Dec. 31, 2011 Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square	Jan. 31, 2011 Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square 8.5% Hotel Mezzanine loan receivable	Apr. 30, 2010 Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square 8.5% Hotel Mezzanine loan receivable	Dec. 31, 2011 JW Marriott New Orleans Y	Feb. 28, 2011 JW Marriott New Orleans	Apr. 30, 2011 Entity that owns Hilton San Diego Bayfront Y	Dec. 31, 2011 Entity that owns Hilton San Diego Bayfront Y	Dec. 31, 2011 Notes payable maturing at dates ranging from July 2012 through May 2021 Hotel facility	Dec. 31, 2010 Notes payable maturing at dates ranging from July 2012 through May 2021 Hotel facility	Apr. 30, 2011 Notes payable maturing in April 2016	Dec. 31, 2011 Notes payable maturing in April 2016 Hotel	Dec. 31, 2011 Senior Notes maturing in July 2027	Dec. 31, 2010 Senior Notes maturing in July 2027	Dec. 31, 2009 Senior Notes maturing in July 2027	Dec. 31, 2008 Senior Notes maturing in July 2027	Oct. 31, 2011 Senior corporate credit facility	Nov. 30, 2010 Senior corporate credit facility Y	Dec. 31, 2011 Senior corporate credit facility Y	Dec. 31, 2011 Senior corporate credit facility Maximum	Nov. 30, 2010 Senior corporate credit facility Maximum	Dec. 31, 2011 Senior corporate credit facility Minimum	Nov. 30, 2010 Senior corporate credit facility Minimum	Dec. 31, 2011 Hilton Times Square new loan	Nov. 30, 2010 Hilton Times Square new loan Y	Nov. 30, 2010 Hilton Times Square maturing loan	Oct. 31, 2011 Notes payable maturing in October 2018 M Y	Dec. 31, 2011 Notes payable maturing in October 2018 Hotel
Notes payable:
Total notes payable	$ 1,571,612,000	$ 1,133,727,000												$ 1,091,306,000	$ 1,071,227,000		$ 237,806,000	$ 62,500,000	$ 62,500,000														$ 180,000,000
Less: discount on Senior Notes	(1,135,000)	(2,197,000)
Total notes payable, net	1,570,477,000	1,131,530,000
Less: current portion	(53,935,000)	(16,196,000)
Notes payable, less current portion	1,516,542,000	1,115,334,000
Fixed interest rate, low end of range (as a percent)														4.97%
Fixed interest rate, high end of range (as a percent)														9.88%
Number of hotel properties provided as collateral														19	18		1																1
Number of commercial laundry facilities provided as collateral														1	1
Fixed interest rate (as a percent)										5.45%								4.60%											4.97%	4.97%	5.915%
Ownership interest acquired (as a percent)						62.00%	62.00%					75.00%	75.00%
Purchase price of acquired entity						37,500,000					93,800,000
Debt assumed at acquisition						270,000,000				42,200,000	42,200,000
Interest rate, description of reference rate					3-month LIBOR	3-Month LIBOR						3-Month LIBOR	3-Month LIBOR			3-Month LIBOR	3-Month LIBOR						LIBOR	LIBOR								3-Month LIBOR	3-Month LIBOR
Interest rate added to base rate (as a percent)					3.25%	1.15%						3.25%	3.25%				3.25%								4.25%	4.25%	3.25%	3.25%				3.25%
Unrestricted cash used for repayment of non-recourse senior mortgage and mezzanine debt					90,000,000
Principal amount of purchased debt				32,500,000				30,000,000	30,000,000
New mortgage loan					180,000,000							240,000,000	240,000,000																	92,500,000		180,000,000
Amortization period of mortgage loans (in years)										25		30	30																	30		30
Amount paid to acquire business											51,600,000	182,800,000
Debt replaced			187,500,000
Number of months during which loan requires interest only payments																																24
Implicit interest rate (as a percent)																		6.50%
Accretion of Senior Notes	1,062,000	996,000	1,813,000															1,100,000	1,000,000	1,800,000
Principal amount of notes, basis for conversion																		1,000			1,000
Initial exchange rate for notes (in shares)																					28.9855
Current exchange rate for notes (in shares)																		32.9179
Initial exchange price (in dollars per share)																					$ 34.50
Current exchange price (in dollars per share)																		$ 30.38
Redemption price of exchangeable senior notes as a percentage of principal amount (as a percent)																		100.00%
Redemption price of exchangeable senior notes as a percentage of principal amount due to change in control (as a percent)																		100.00%
Maximum borrowing capacity of credit facility																							150,000,000	150,000,000
Initial term of credit facility																							3	3
Period for which credit facility term can be extended (in years)																							1	1
Maximum borrowing capacity of credit facility, subject to approval by the lender group																							250,000,000	250,000,000
Repayment of mortgage loan			119,800,000									233,800,000	233,800,000																		81,000,000
Amount drawn under credit facility for general corporate purposes																						$ 40,000,000